Terms and Conditions

We always try to run reliable services and to get you to your destination on time. At times our services cannot be run as advertised for reasons beyond our control or that of our contractors. We will only do this for good reasons and, if it happens, we will do our best to inform all service users why, and to get you to your destination as soon as possible.

We reserve the right to refuse a booking, without stating any reason, although will give reasons whenever possible.

When making bookings we will inform you of where you will be picked up and dropped off. You must, by the designated time, be at the designated pick-up point, on the correct side of the road, as instructed in your booking confirmation. All uplifts (pick-ups and set-downs) are normally made from the nearside kerb (in UK, on the left hand side of the street in direction of travel). We will use the official time of the main mobile phone networks in our services.

If you are late, we will not be able to wait for you to arrive. If you are not at the designated pick-up location by the designated time, your booking, except at our discretion, may be forfeited including funds paid. Thus, you will need to make another booking with us to travel. (We are not a taxi service and cannot wait for you if you are late. Therefore you should treat our timings as you would a bus or rail service.)

We will inform you if we need to move the location of your pick-up. If so, we will only do so if you can make the change in sufficient time, and in safety. (For example, as a result of additional bookings that amend the vehicle’s route, we may ask you to cross the road on a quiet street, or by using a protected crossing facility, but we will not ask you to cross busy, unprotected roads.)

Unless previously agreed, it is your responsibility to have a functioning Internet connection that can be reached in the location of your journey, as we will use this to contact you once your booking has been made. If we need to contact you, we will normally first attempt to do so via the Simply Connect app. Failing that, we will attempt to contact you by SMS message (text).

You must accept the discretion of our driver in adjusting the pick-up and set-down location to maintain your safety, and the safety of our other passengers.

Our vehicles cannot make uplifts, or drive along roads or streets, in areas where they cannot legally or physically enter or safely manoeuvre within. You should not try to ask or influence your driver to make any such manoeuvres.

We will set you down as close to the designated point as safely possible, but cannot guarantee this in all circumstances.

If you are unable to precisely locate the pick-up location, you should contact us and tell us exactly where you are. You should first contact us via the Simply Connect app: if this is not possible, then send us an SMS text message stating “lost”, and give your location (e.g. “at lamp-post No. XXX, street XXX”). You will then normally be sent a text message telling you where to move to for the pick-up. We will not normally charge you in the event of a genuine mistake, but reserve the right to forfeit the funds paid for your booking if at our sole discretion we suspect that this is not a genuine mistake.

You can only use any of our services under the following conditions

you have a confirmed booking, paid for in advance and we have confirmed receipt of funds, or;

you have a designated permit to travel, or;

you have another valid travel authority.

We currently do not offer any season tickets or discounted tickets. Simply Connect is not part of National Concessionary Travel schemes, local discounted travel passes, National Rail discounted travel passes or any other public transport travel scheme.

If you cancel or change a booking more than 15 minutes before its start, we will normally allow a full refund, or the requested change, if that is feasible within our scheduling. Note that for remote journeys, or for where the vehicle is already en-route to your pick-up point, refund is unlikely to be available.

We will process funds for your booking at the time of booking. A valid payment card and sufficient funds must be available to enable this payment to occur. If not, your booking will not be accepted and you will not be able to travel with us on this occasion.

We reserve the right, at our absolute discretion, to charge you for bookings if you repeatedly cancel or amend them, or if we consider that the booking was not made ‘with good intent’ even if the changes were made before the 15 minute discretionary ‘cut-off’ window.

In the vehicle(s), there will always be enough seats available for you and any others specified in the booking. If a vehicle to which you have been allocated is not full then you may sit in your preferred seat, but this will not always be possible, as we carry other passengers. We will not refund your booking if you choose not to travel in a designated vehicle that has available space.

We cannot always guarantee that groups of travellers will be able to travel together in the same vehicle. A group may need to be split between multiple vehicles, but we will let you know if this is the case.

We want to make sure that all your journeys are safe. You must follow instructions given by our staff.

We may withdraw the service at any time (for example, in response to inclement weather, public events, civil disturbance or other safety or operational issues). If we have to do this we will endeavour to let you know well in advance.

You must not do anything forbidden by our Byelaws or by the Conduct Regulations.

We may require you to leave our vehicle at any time. This will usually be for your safety and we will inform you why we are asking you to do this and what further steps we are taking to enable you to complete your journey

You must not attempt to open the door until instructed it is safe to do so by the driver. Doing so may cause delay, and risk your and other’s safety and comfort.

The driver may ask you to move to another seat if, for example, a passenger with limited mobility finds it easier to sit by the door. We encourage your cooperation in such situations.

You should not travel in the front passenger seat (alongside the driver) unless invited to do so by the driver.

You must wear a seatbelt within our vehicle when it is in motion, and remain in your seat until the vehicle has stopped at your set-down point.

For safety reasons, on our vehicles you must not:

take flash photographs and/or use a tripod or other camera support equipment;

photograph, video or audio record the driver or our other passengers without written permission from Simply Connect Ltd and all relevant parties;

use emergency exits except in an emergency or when instructed to do so by our staff.

You may be prosecuted for disobeying these requirements.

You must not unduly distract the driver in any way whilst the vehicle is in motion.

You must be 16 years or older to book or use our services, unless you are travelling as part of a group with a designated adult traveller who must be at least 16. The total number of travellers (including babies and young children) must be stated as part of the Simply Connect booking. You may be prompted to specify the ages of children travelling with an adult on the booking. Children must be supervised by a responsible adult at all times and are subject to the other conditions outlined in these Terms and Conditions.

Accompanied children may travel with you, but can only do so if we can carry them safely. In order to comply with UK law, and as we currently do not have child seats on our vehicles, children who travel with us must be of a size that they can safely and legally use an adult seat and seatbelt. (Note: regular users who wish to be accompanied by children who need a car seat, should contact us, as we may be able to make specific arrangements.)

We cannot currently accept babies travelling in buggies, but can accept babies being carried in their own car seat, that can be strapped into a normal adult seat belt. Foldable child buggies are allowed in our vehicles, subject to supervision of the driver. If you have made special arrangements with us for a child seat to be available, you must be able to take your child out of any prams or buggies, and be prepared to move the child and pram into and out of the vehicle without assistance.

We currently do not offer level access to our vehicles (but will endeavour to do so at the earliest possible date). Thus, while the driver may be in a position to assist you in entering and leaving the vehicle if you have a physical disability, you will need to be able to enter a mid-sized van independently. We cannot currently transport motorized personal mobility devices.

Our vehicles will be monitored by CCTV cameras. CCTV images are recorded for the purpose of crime prevention, detection, legal proceedings and public safety. Images of alleged offenders may be passed to the police and be used in a court of law.

You will be expected to conduct yourself in a way that is appropriate in a confined area with other customers during your journey with Simply Connect. Expected behaviours include, but are not limited to the following. You should:

act in a considerate and responsible manner;

act safely;

cooperate with our staff and treat them and other passengers with respect;

not ask the driver to speed up, divert, or set you down except at the designated point;

not be inebriated or under the influence of other drugs;

not use language or behaviour that is likely to cause offence to others;

be sensitive to the needs of other passengers in the vehicle, especially when speaking on your mobile phone;

ensure that you are the only person that can hear your music;

not consume alcohol;

not be in possession of an open container of alcohol;

not consume hot food of any kind;

not smoke in the vehicle: this includes e-cigarettes (vaping);

not take or carry any non-prescription drugs (except ‘over the counter’ medicines);

safeguard your luggage at all times;

ensure your luggage does not obstruct others, or cause a trip hazard;

take particular care of other passengers if you have placed luggage on the overhead racks;

remove (or not use) roller skates, roller blades, scooters, skateboards, hoverboards or similar equipment in the vehicle (we will carry these subject to available space);

keep your feet off the seats;

not leave behind litter of any kind;

remember that the seat will be used by another passenger after you finish your journey, so please minimise and remove if necessary any crumbs or other mess, especially from your seat.

If you spoil or damage any of our vehicles, or the vehicle needs to be cleaned as a result of your conduct during your journey, you may be charged for the cost to us of any repairs or cleaning. This may include paying for the 'downtime' of a vehicle if it needs to be taken out of service while the necessary work is carried out.

We cannot transport full size bicycles, but will allow transport of fully folded collapsible bicycles that are carried by you, subject to space being available. It is your responsibility to ensure that your bicycle does not cause damage or injury to others, or to the vehicle. The driver may refuse to carry such bicycles if they are not enclosed in a suitable protective bag, and/or if they are very dirty (for example wet or muddy), as this may damage other passengers’ clothes or belongings.

You may bring personal shopping or luggage onto the vehicle, but you must be able to carry this yourself and place it in the appropriate place within the vehicle without assistance.

You should be aware of the space limitations of the Simply Connect vehicles. We are unlikely to be able to carry large items of luggage (such as furniture and large musical instruments).If you wish to bring larger items of luggage, you should notify us at the time of booking and we will do our best to accommodate your needs. However, we cannot lose access to any passenger seats because of unbooked large items of luggage: if you have not notified us of your large luggage items we reserve the right to either charge an additional sum for its carriage, or to refuse to carry the luggage.

Shopping or luggage brought onto the vehicle must not be offensive, disruptive or likely to cause injury to other passengers, be hazardous or inflammable, or cause damage or impairment of the operation of the vehicle. We have the right to prevent you from bringing anything onto our vehicles if we believe it may create a security risk. The driver will have authority to deny the carriage of goods onto the vehicle, if deemed inappropriate.

You can bring an assistance dog with you without charge. For the comfort of all of our other passengers, other dogs, cats and animals are not normally allowed in our vehicles. (If you wish to travel with an animal, you should discuss this with us in advance of making the booking.)

You should report any safety or other issues, in the first instance to the driver, but may also contact Simply Connect Ltd at info@simply-connect.com